Grace In Small Things Is Good

Some Fridays, I face this blog with trepidation. You see, I set as a goal for myself last October to post Only The Good on Fridays. I have to tell y’all that I am not an optimistic person by nature!

Although I am not as cynical as Ambrose Bierce (aka “Bitter” Bierce), who is one of my favorite authors, I have to fight to be optimistic. In his Devil’s Dictionary, Bierce defined “optimism” this way:

“The doctrine, or belief, that everything is beautiful, including what is ugly, everything good, especially the bad, and everything right that is wrong. It is held with greatest tenacity by those most accustomed to the mischance of falling into adversity, and is most acceptably expounded with the grin that apes a smile. Being a blind faith, it is inaccessible to the light of disproof — an intellectual disorder, yielding to no treatment but death. It is hereditary, but fortunately not contagious.”

I think Bierce goes a bit far for the sake of humor. I don’t believe optimism is “hereditary,” and I think it can be contagious. My theory is that you sometimes have to “fake it until you make it.” Sometimes, you just have to find grace in small things.

In fact, there is a blogger named Schmutzie, who can be almost as cynical as Ambrose Bierce sometimes, who created a group on Ning to help bloggers find that Grace In Small Things. You can create a little blog on the site and she encourages folks to post every day. “Why?” you ask? She says:

“Grace in Small Things exists because we are choosing not to allow the noisiness of life to rob us of the time and energy to be mindful of ourselves and those we love and to recognize the grace that exists in small things.”

Although I created a site, I haven’t looked at it in months. Quite frankly, I simply can’t stomach being optimistic Every. Single. Stinkin’. Day.
Perhaps you can? Check it out if you want to try it. Setting up the account is easy, and you can be a part of a small “community” of bloggers. It might do you some good.

For today, Grace in Small Things is my “good.” Although I’m not rushing to open up my site and blog on it, I’ll try to list my “small things” here:

1. I woke up this morning.
2. There was coffee.
3. I had an internet connection.

What?

Is that not good enough? I thought it was a pretty good start. Come to think of it, though, it’s a little lame. Let me try again:

1. I woke up this morning relatively pain free.
2. There was Sumatra blend coffee, my favorite rich dark roast.
3. I had an internet connection … and a mostly empty in-box on my e-mail.

Better? What?

You people are slave drivers! OK. OK!

1. I woke up this morning relatively pain free and when I stepped out of bed I didn’t land in cat barf.
2. There was Sumatra blend coffee, my favorite rich dark roast, which my beloved husband had brewed for me, and which I drank as I watched a glorious sunrise.
3. I had an internet connection… and a mostly empty in-box on my e-mail — and WordPress hadn’t done any overnight updates, so I don’t have to upgrade any plug-ins today.

That’s the best I can do this morning! So tell me, what “grace” do you find today? Tell me something “good,” and if you’d like you can visit some other bloggers who occasionally post their own good. If you want to join, let me know and I will link you here.

RV Poetry; Candid Karina; All My Great, or Not So Great Adventures; Inside Mo’s Mind; Thorne’s World; Down River Drivel; Duward Discussion; Ramblings of an Unstable Mind; Insightful Nana; Newbie Lifeline; Everyday Tarot; West of Mars; Life’s Journey; Round Circle; Barbara’s Travels; Blog of Revelation; Desert Diva; Blogjem

Have a glorious weekend!

Related posts:

1. Morning Coffee Is Good
2. Quick Links #2
3. Only The Good Fridays
4. “Can I Speak to a HUMAN, Please?”
5. Peek-A-Boo

Tagged as: Ambrose Bierce, Grace in Small Things, Only The Good Friday, optimism